VT’s worst drop since 2008 was 50%
Vanguard Total World Stock ETF (VT) fell 50% from Jun 2008 to Mar 2009. It took 2.5 years from that peak to close at a new high, in Dec 2010. Over the same years the S&P 500 fell as much as 47%.
That drop is milder than most. It ranks 104th of the 203 ETFs PortfolioAutopsy tracks, counted from the deepest.
Drawdown from the last high, 2008 to now
How VT held up in each crash
| Crash | Years | VT | S&P 500 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dot-com bust | 2000–02 | not trading yet | −47.5% |
| Financial crisis | 2007–09 | not trading yet | −55.2% |
| COVID crash | 2020 | −34.2% | −33.7% |
| 2022 rate shock | 2022 | −26.2% | −24.5% |
Each number is the deepest fall from a high inside that window, using daily prices with dividends reinvested.
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What was VT’s maximum drawdown?
VT’s deepest fall since 2008 was 50.2%, from its high on June 30, 2008 to its low on March 9, 2009. The figure uses daily prices with dividends reinvested.
How long did VT take to recover?
2.5 years. VT first closed above its Jun 2008 high again on December 29, 2010.
Was VT riskier than the S&P 500?
Over the same years, VT’s worst drop was 50.2% against 47.2% for the S&P 500 (SPY), and its worst 12 months were −29.4% against −29.1%.
Compare with
Daily adjusted closes from Yahoo Finance, June 27, 2008 through October 13, 2026, dividends reinvested. Historical facts, not a forecast and not investment advice.